Filling machine



Aug. 26, 1930. -w, F BUTLER FILLING MAcHn'JE Original Filed Dec. 51, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

BY-' W M? 7 i ATTQRNEXS Aug. 26, 1930. w. F. BUTLER FILLING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Dec. 31, 1924 INVENTOR.

dean/41vv ATTORNEYS Patented Aug. 26, 1930 UNlTED STATES PATENT orrics WILLIAM F. BUTLER, 0F HILLSIDE, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOB TO AMERICAN CAN COM- PANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY FILLING MACHINE Application filed December 31', 1924, Serial No. 759,187. Renewed July 11, 1926.

This invention relates to filling machines and its purpose is to provide a machine for filling paint cans, or other receptacles, by means of automatic mechanism adapted to cutoff the flow of material into the container after a predetermined Weight, or volume, has been placed therein.

The embodiment of the invention which I have shown upon the drawings is particularly adapted for filling cans With paint or like liquid materiel, though I desire to have it understood that the invention is not limited to this use, but may be embodied in machines for filling cans or other containers with various kinds of products which may or may not be of liquid form.

A highly important feature of the invention is the use of on electrical control for the filling mocha ism adapted to quickly and acci'iratcly cut off the flow of material after a prcdctermii-ied quantity has been admitted to the container and from this aspect of the invention, the devices for actuating the electrical control to make and break the contacts may ac considered as of any type suitable for t le purpose, the particular mechanical elemcnts and means of operation being uni-mportant.

Another object of the invention; is the provision of :in electrical control. for a filling machine in conjunction with a? weighing mechanism, pre erably a platform scales for supporting the can to be filled, whereby the movement of: the platform and container positioned thereon under the Weight of the material entering the container is utilized to control the electrical connections so that the weightof the container determines the time of cutting: oil the flow of the material.

A. further object of the invention is the provision, in a. filling machine, of a double or plural valve n, lhanism adapted to first ut down the flow of material to a: relatively small stream and thereafter. throi-in'h the 5 closing of another valve, finally cutting oil the flow with exactness and rapidity, which would be impossible With a single valve, the valves for this purpose being preferably arranged one Within the other and the flow of the material assisting to seat the outer or main valve.

In filling and Weighing containers in large quantities, it is very essential that the cutting off and stopping of the flow of material into the container be accomplished with great exactness and rapidity. In such filling, the paintor other material is ordinarily conveyed by pipes from large vats which are placed above the filling outlet. or valve, and which, by reason their position and con struction, result in a considerable hydros atic head, with its attendantpressure. N This, rcsv its in a very rapid f1 .ing audit is obvious that, under such conditions, the valve member must act very rapidly after the 21* quantity of material has entered the container; To this end, I have provided for on ceptional'ly quick operation of the valves and in the event that a valves are emi yloyed, the constrr tio. that said valves are closed successively so that as the container approa hes the desired Weight, the main flow cut off and later after the exact desired Wcioht is attaches.

x3 the filling outlet completely closed, with a high degree of pro on and accuracy arrangement contributing to cleanlin in operation of the machine.

Numerous other objects and adva ages of the invention will be apparent as i' is bet understood from the following description, which, taken in connection with th accompanying drawings, discloses a preferred embodiment thereof.

Referring to the drawings,

Figure l is a. side elevation, broken away, of filling machine in which my invention is embodied;

Fig. 2' is a top plan vieiv thereof Figs. 3 and l are sectional views, taken p artiall i til upon Fig. 2, substantially along the sectiei lines 33 and -ll, respectively; and

Fig. 5 i sectional plan view taken along the line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

Upon said drawings, I have shown, for illustrative purposes on y, a preferred form of my invention, in which the reference character 11 indicates a. base from which arises an upright 12, supporting a filling head 13 above a platform 14: of a scale mechanism which is supported by means of a knife-edge pin 15 in upstanding ears or brackets 16 upon said base 11. Said knife-edge pin 15 extends transversely through a beam 17, which is serrated at the top, as indicated at 18. and adapted to carry a weight 19. which may be adjusted to any desired position thereon to balance the weight of a container 2i. supported upon the platform l i, when said container is filled with the desired volume of paint, or other material, as will be presently more fully described. The platform lei ric'idl v secured to a neck-piece 2L, whicl extent through a slot in the end of the beam 17 at the let of the knife-edge support 15, said neck-piece being rigid with a plate 23 having thereon a pair of integral apertured brackets 2i, :1- tending upwardly at opposite sides of the beam. Knife-edge pins extend outwardly z from the beam at opposite sides tlllGt f and into the apertures of said brackets and a threaded pin 26 extends downwardly from said neck piece through an aperture 27 in the base and is pivotally connected with an arm 28 pivoted at 29 to a lug 31 depending from the under side of said base. The beam 17 and said arm 28 are thus held in parallelism and the platform Ll is carried upon the beam in such manner as to present a level surface at all times, regardless of the norn al variations in the angle of said scale beam. A hook 32 upon the end of said beam, at the left in Fig. 1, cooperates with an eye 33 extending upwardly from the base to limit the w pivotal movement of the beam upon the knife-edge 15, in manner which will be readily understood.

The containers to be filled are placed upon the platform 14 by hand, or by any suitable feeding mechanism, and are adapted to enge an arm 8% carried upon a rock sleeve 35, mounted upon a fixed stud 36 projecting from the filling head 13. Said sleeve carries arms 37 and 38. which carry, respectively, spring blades 39 and all provided at their upper ends with contact members 42 and 43 adapted to engage terminals ll upon a oraclret 45, which supports the filling head and is projected from a plate 46, which is adjustably secured by bolts l to the upright 12, said upright being provided with a featherway and said plate having a tongue 49 disposed in said featherway, whereby the filling head may be vertically adjusted with respect to the platform let, in accordance with the height of the cans to be filled. One of said par-ts, say the upright 12, is provided with a slot or slots 12 through which said bolts pass.

{eferring now to Figs. 3 and l, it will be observed that I provide in the filling head 13 two solenoids, indicated, respective by the reference characters 51 and which are connected by suitable wiring 53 with the terminals fat, so that when contact made with said terminals by the contacts 452 and 4-3, said solenoids are energized for the purpose of controlling the outlet valves, as will now be described. A main valve member, consisting of core a l, a. perforated tube (ll and a beveled part 56, movably mounted within the awer part 55 of the filling head and is adapted to be acted upon by the main solenoid 51 to lift the lower beveled pa :t 56 out of contact with a valve :37 in tl e bottom of the filling head when said solenoid energized by completing the electric circuit in which s included, in the manner here- .ibed. The lower beveled por- 5b of said valve 54: has a small opening in the center thereof and perforations 55) said )0 (il communicate with a chamber vhich is commimicably connected by means of pipe 69. with a source of the ma tic-rial to be packed, which inav he a vat, or any suitable container, and is arranged to pr vide a suitable pressure to cause the material to flow through th filling head when the valve open. The opening 58 normally elos by means of a valve rod 6 which is cisposed within the perforated tube 6% in the main valve member and extends upwardly through a core ('34 positioned in the bore 65 in an upper portion 66 of the filling head, in which is also disposed around the bore (35 the second solenoid which is adapted t be energized by means of the contact t2 and its associated terminal fit.

The main valve member and the second auxiliary valve men her are s to arch other through the medium 5S. Tiis spring is positioned about the valve rod 63 between the lower end 0. le

core 64: of the second solenoid 5Q lar 63 tired to the valve stem -3.

clearly keeps the opening excess of the movement of t member ant when the latter is opened to unseat the opening 58 when the iii) Car

main valve member is closed to seat its opening 67.

Material flowing through the pipe 62 passes through a circular screen 61 and if y the main valve is in open position, passes through the opening 67 about the beveled part 56 of thev main valve member. A portion of the material also passes through the perforations 59 of the tube 64 and through a collar member 56 which surrounds the valve stem 63, the said collar having notches 57' to permit communication between the inside of the perforated tube 64 and the lower part of the second or auxiliary valve. These notches 57 are for the purpose of breaking up the flow of the material through the opening 58, thus preventing the liquid from falling into the container being filled with such force or velocity as to influence the depression of the platform 14 of the scale mechanism. This construction tends to provide a restricted flow of material and thus tends to increase the accuracy of the scales.

The screen 61, arranged in the valve chamber 61, prevents any solid substance contained in the liquid passing into the chamber from passing into the container, as this might tend to clog the valve mechanisms.

or the eflicient operation of the valves, it is desirable that different materials be used for different parts, in accordance with the magnetic property desired in said parts. For this reason, the outer wall of the filling head 13, which comprises the valve casing, is preferably made of steel, or other material having substantially the same magnetic property. The parts surrounding the core members 54and 64 are preferably made of brass, or like material, in order to prevent lateral attraction of the core members which would interfere with the lifting thereof by the solenoids. These brassparts, as shown, comprise the lower part of the filling head, or valve chamber 55, with an upwardly extended tubular part 55 thereof and a tube 60 surroundin the core 64 and disposed adjacent the sma ler solenoid 52.

lVhen a can to be filled is positioned upon the platform 14, the arm 34 is rotated to es tablish the contacts 42, 44 and 43, 44, thus energizing the solenoids 51 and 52, lifting both the valves 54 and 63. The material is thus admitted through the main valve opening 67 into the container and as the weight increases, said container tends to overbalance the weight 19 upon the opposite end of the scale beam from the platform 14 and as it moves downwardly, the arm 34 moves correspo'ndingly, so that at a. predetermined weight of the can, the contact 43 is moved away from its associated contact 44, de-energizing the solenoid 51 and permitting the valve 54 to descend to close the openii'ig 67. It will be observed that the contact 42 is arranged in advance of the contact 43, so

that the latter contact is first disengaged, permitting the valve 54 to close prior to the closing of the valve 63 and the flowlof the material through the passages 59 and opening 58 assist in the seating of said main valve. Thereafter, as the container continues on its downward movement, the solenoid 52 is de energized by the moving of the contact 42 out of engagement with its associated terminal 44 and the valve 63 is permitted to descend by gravity, assisted by the flow of material, to close said opening 58 and thus completely cut oil the flow of material into the container.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantages will be understood from the foregoing description, and it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the parts, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the form hereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

I claim:

1. A filling machine, comprising scale mechanism including a support for a container to be filled, filling mechanism including a head and valve, electrical meansinclud ing a core connected with the valve, a coil to operate said core and contacts for controlling said coil, and means on the head of said filling mechanism operable by movement of the container as it is put in filling position and then by the weight of the material filled thereinto, for making and breaking said electrical contacts to open said valve when a container is placed on said support and to close it when material of predetermined weight has been fed into the container.

2. A- filling machine, comprising scale mechanism including a support for a container to be filled, filling mechanism including a valve, electrical means including a core connected with the valve, a coil to operate said core and contacts for controlling said coil, and means on the head of the filling mechanism and operable by the container as it is put in filling position and then upon move ment of the scale support under the weight of the material fed into the container, for making and breaking said electrical contacts to open said valve when a container is placed on said support and to close it when material of predetermined weight has been fed into the container.

A filling machine, comprising scale mechanism including a support for a container to be filled, a filling head and mechanism, means whereby said filling mechanism is adapted for vertical adjustment above the container position and including a valve, electrical means including a core connected with the valve, a coil to operate said core and contacts for controlling said coil, and

iii)

means on said ing head operable by movement of the container and then by the vvei ht of the material tilled thereinto, for llltllilllg and breaking said lectrical contacts to open container is plac d on said said valve \vhen a support and to c o [3 determined Weight has been led into the container.

LL filling machine, comprising scal mechanism includinitg a support for 1 container to he lilled, lilli hamsm includ- .vclv operable consame point of eliveiy for CO? the feeding; 0t mat -l into the Qt electrical means {or openinpane t ralvt with the in coma ct to sail li nism.

llleClltlll er to a plural I cont olling the feeding of filling machine, comprising" scale 1 including a support for a contamoo lled, lihn inclru n ot' succes 1e arresiior into the opcnipg container, and electric and closing" said valve position of the containc til 'ng mechan m and QOtl one Within the e being provide C \vi which the material may valve is closed.

G. l. filling machine, comprising scale mechanism including a support l nor to he filled, l ll ng niecl anism incl ing a plurality of suc'e .'voly operahle "i for controlling the j" umgoi material' container, and electrical means for and closirg said valves in accordancthe position of the container with rest :tt said fillinc mechanism and said valves k 1 e other and the valve being provided vith open" thr which the material may pass alte sari outer valve is closed and the latter being seated partially through the passage of the ma thercthrough.

'4'. A filling machine, comprising scale mechanism including a support for a conier to he filled, a filling head having valve therein, astem on said valve, a mag; netic core connected vvith said s n, a solenoid for controlling said core, means on said head and c1" 'cahle by the container for eni 4 said solenoid i op n the valve when a container is positioned for filling, and

means for de-encrg'iinngr the solen n the material fed into the container r cries a predetermined Weight.

8. it lilling machine, comprising stale mechanism including a support for a container to he tilled. a till 1 head,

ot valves 11 aid tiling n a so V J! noid arr: contro rch Or t,

i V s s M A A inc-ans -o-r caeigiamg scsolenoids Lu open tlllllir LO valves when a container is positioned means for (le -energizing the the material fed into the conpredetermined Weight.

machine, co uprising scale ltdinp' a support for a cona lilting head, a plurality of ing; head, a separate soleed to control each it said valves, nc; s2 'd solenoids to open positioned naterial into the conit said valves controlcl small opening so that as the l,)t"(;lllGS nearly tilled, the stream of L- res relatively small and may be clot-ed o d accurately checked. flllilffg machine, comprising scale including a support for a con- J to lie fi led. a filling head, a plurality 100 lv s i=1 rid filling head, a separate solea "1 l to control each of said valves, s For energizing said solenoids to open lvcs when a container is positioned tor and me: us for succe slvely de-cncr- 105 said s r lenoids so that first one and he other of said alvos closed to accrt on the passage of material into or taincr, the last closed o'l said valves controlling a relatively small opening in no the iirstwlosed valve, the material passing this r h said opening assi ting in ating said first-closed val "o and the stream of material into the conta ner heing greatly reduced and e e piicltl and accurately checked iii;

tdapted to l rer said val\ l2. 1 till machn e, comprising a scale ucchanisin includim: a support for a contain to he lilled, a filling; head having a *alve crein commun'cu'ingz vsith a supply of we terial to he packed, electro-magnet-ic us for opening said valve, and means on illinc' he; d operable by a container on said scale support for energiz 'tion of said con i 1 lilhng head to ectro-magnctic means and -osing of the valve after material of predetermined weight has been fed into the container, said valve having a magnetic core and said control having a coil enclosing said core.

13. A filling machine, comprising a scale mechanism including a support for a container to be filled, a filling head having a valve therein communicating with a supply of material to be packed, electro-magnetic means for opening said valve, and means operable by a container placed upon said scale sup port for energizing said electro-magnetic means to open the valve, said means incluc ing an arm adapted to contact with the container, a rocking member associated with said arm and an electric contact carried by said rocking member, said arm being movable in accordance with the change of position of said container to move said contact and there by de-energize said electro-magnetic means to permit gravity closing of said valve after material of predetermined weight has been placed in the container.

14. A filling machine, comprising a scale mechanism includingasupport foracontainer to be filled, a filling head having a plurality of valves arranged one within the other therein and communicating with a source of material to be packed, separate electromagnetic means for opening each of said valves, an arm operable by contact with acontainer placed upon said scale support, a plurality of contacts associated with said arm and movable thereby to establish electrical connections with said electro-magnetic means to open the valves when a container is positioned for filling, said contacts being arranged one in advance of the other and said arm being movable in accordance with the change of position of the container as the scale n echanism moves downwardly under the weight of the material to successively break the con tacts and cause said valves to successively close to first cut off the main stream of the material into the container and then cut ofi a smaller stream, thereby controlling the filling so that only an exact predetermined quantity of material is fed into each container.

15. A filling machine, comprising platform scales, a filling head, means whereby said filling head is adapted for vertical adjustment above the platform of said scales in accord ance with the height of the containers to be filled, a valve in said head communicating with a source of material to be packed, and an electrical control for said valve adapted to cut off the flow of material when material of predetermined weight has been placed upon a platform of said scales, said valve having a magnetic core and said control having a coil enclosing said core, said electrical control having a part mounted on the filling head VILLIAM F. BUTLER.

lill 

